Ending Government Sponsorship of the Mt. Soledad Cross

Published: August 24, 2006

August 24, 2006

The ACLU, the Jewish War Veterans, and local residents sued the U.S. government and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, charging that the continued display of the Mt. Soledad Latin cross on federally owned land unlawfully entangles government with religion.

“The ACLU believes that religious symbols, even prominently displayed, are an important and constitutionally protected form of religious expression in the public sphere,” said David Blair-Loy, Legal Director of the ACLU. “There is a huge difference between families and religious communities expressing their religious beliefs, though, and the U.S. government–using all of its power, authority, financing, and property–to promote the beliefs of one faith over all others.”